1908 GAME AND FISHERIES. 39 



number of other cases of illegal fishing have been complained of, and sum- 

 monses have been issued for them to appear before the Warden. He has at 

 present quite a number of cases of illegal fishing under investigation, 

 and the parties will in due course be called on to answer to the charge against 

 them. He savs that, although considerable illegal fishing has been going on 

 during the past three months, nearly all of the oiienders were people living 

 in his district, and that they are very hard to watch, but as a number of 

 prosecutions will take place at an early date, he hopes to have the law better 

 observed in future in this respect. 



Re game birds and animals. He was notified about the 5th Octol>er 

 last that two men were trapping muskrats on the waters of Gull Lake, Town- 

 ship of Clarendon. He immediately went to investigate, and found their 

 camp abandoned. He was advised by residents living in that vicinity that 

 they had taken over two hundred skins. He followed them to Snow Road 

 station, and found that they had shipped their camping outfit to Cache Bay. 

 He immediately wrote the Game and Fishery Warden at North Bay, advising 

 him of the matter, and he has since advised him that he has located the men 

 referred to. About the 8th October he was notified that a party of Indians 

 were killing deer on Crutch Lake, Township of Palmerston, and on investi- 

 gation he found them camped on the shore of the lake with sufficient evidence 

 to prove their guilt. He had them summoned before the Warden and after 

 proving their guilt they were let go on suspended sentence. The law in 

 other respects appears to have been fairly well observed. 



Overseer Ephraim Deacon, of BolinghroJce, reports that the close seasons 

 were well observed, and no informations were laid against anyone. 



The season for angling was a good one, but there is no appreciable 

 decrease in the number of fish. 



Deer and partridge are increasing in his district. Several deer have 

 been seen where some years ago there were none. 



Overseer Henry Esford, of Barrief\.eld, reports that the net fishing in 

 his district has not been as good as last year, but angling has been better, 

 and has been good up to a late date, on account of such a fine fall. His 

 fishermen report that dogfish are very numerous. He has not seen any carp 

 since last spring, and the fishermen have not reported any. Plenty of black 

 bass are reported in his section of Rideau Canal, where there never were 

 ar^- before. There were always plenty of large-mouthed bass, but now there 

 are plenty of small-mouthed as well.' 



Ducks are scarce this fall, but last spring there were thousands. Musk- 

 rats are plentiful, the catch being larger last spring than other years. Mink 

 was a little scarcer than other years. 



The law was strictly kept. 



Overseer James Fisher, of Sunhury, reports that he cannot say whether 

 there was an increase or decrease in the catch of different kinds of fish, as 

 compared with that of previous years, as this is his first year, only that 

 the Americans claimed this to be one of the best years for bass fishing. 



There were no abuses to his knowledge. 



Five men were fined for illegal fishing, and one net confiscated. 



There was no injury done to the fish by mill owners. 



The fishways in his district are in good repair. 



Overseer Adam Greene, of Diamond, reports that the fishing in the 

 Mississippi, Snye, Ottawa, and mouth of the Carp River was better the past 

 season than in 1907. Pickerel and bass were plentiful, but pike were scarce, 

 owing, he thinks, to being too well fed. Small fish were very plentiful. Ho 



